Mooney Richard
Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, , PO Box 3209, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2014 Apr 28;369(1644):20130179. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2013.0179. Print 2014.
Mirror neurons are theorized to serve as a neural substrate for spoken language in humans, but the existence and functions of auditory-vocal mirror neurons in the human brain remain largely matters of speculation. Songbirds resemble humans in their capacity for vocal learning and depend on their learned songs to facilitate courtship and individual recognition. Recent neurophysiological studies have detected putative auditory-vocal mirror neurons in a sensorimotor region of the songbird's brain that plays an important role in expressive and receptive aspects of vocal communication. This review discusses the auditory and motor-related properties of these cells, considers their potential role on song learning and communication in relation to classical studies of birdsong, and points to the circuit and developmental mechanisms that may give rise to auditory-vocal mirroring in the songbird's brain.
理论上，镜像神经元是人类口语的神经基础，但人类大脑中听觉-发声镜像神经元的存在和功能在很大程度上仍属推测。鸣禽在发声学习能力方面与人类相似，并且依靠它们所学的歌曲来促进求偶和个体识别。最近的神经生理学研究在鸣禽大脑的一个感觉运动区域检测到了假定的听觉-发声镜像神经元，该区域在发声交流的表达和接受方面起着重要作用。这篇综述讨论了这些细胞与听觉和运动相关的特性，结合鸟鸣的经典研究，思考了它们在歌曲学习和交流中的潜在作用，并指出了可能导致鸣禽大脑中听觉-发声镜像的神经回路和发育机制。
